ALTHAEA OFFICINALIS

Family and Genus:- See- MALVACEAE

Common Name:- Marshmallow

Homotypic Synonyms:- Malva althaea, Malva officinalis.

Meaning:- Alcea (Gr) A name used by the Greek physician and botanist

Dioscorides.

Officinalis (L) Officinal medicine.

General description:- Perennial. Whole plant densely and shortly grey-tomentose

with mostly stellate hairs.

Stem:-

1) Up to 1.5 m tall, simple or sparingly branched.

Leaves:-

1) Lower, broadly rhomboid-triangular, shallowly 3-lobed.

2) Upper, narrowly ovate-triangular and simple, all irregularly serrate.

Flowers:-

1) In short-pedunculate clusters exceeded by floral leaves, together forming a

spike-like inflorescence.

2) Epicalyx, segments 6-9, narrowly triangular, shorter and narrower than calyx

teeth.

3) Petals, 12-18 mm, pale mauve-pink or almost white.

4) Sepals, ovate, acute, curved over the fruit.

5) Anthers, purplish-red.

Fruit:-

1) Mericarps, more or less densely covered with stellate hairs, smooth.

Key features:-

1) Sepals, curved over the fruit.

2) Mericarps, stellate-pubescent.

3) Leaves, entire or lobed to about halfway to base.

4) Peduncle, of axillary inflorescences shorter than the subtending leaf.

Click here for a glossary of terms used.

Habitat:- Saline and freshwater marshes, reedswamps, damp to wet meadows,

ditches. 0-400(-900) m.

Distribution:- Mainland Greece to N Peloponnisos, also reported from the Ionian

Islands. - Most of Europe and SW Asia eastwards to Afghanistan. Very rare on

Crete currently known from only one location in the NW (see map)

Flowering time:- Late June to early Oct.

Photos by:- Courtesy of Wiki-Commons